What Christmas Means For Us
by CarlaFromCorrie
Summary: Just a short story whilst I contemplate life...(real info in story, sorry for mistakes)
1. Chapter 1

It took a while to get here for both Carla and Peter, through all the upset, dodging feelings for one another and giving into those feelings, it was fair to say that they definitely loved each other and waking up together on Christmas morning was no exception, it resurfaced the love, the happiness, the feelings for one another which never faded, even though they weren't waking up in their own place, they had each other and that was the main thing.

So here they were, huddled together on the single bed in one of Ken's spare rooms, drinking in the presence of each other, they both never felt more at home than they did right now, even if they didn't have a place to call their own. Carla woke first, the sound of Ken pottering around downstairs making his veggie option for Christmas dinner roused her from her sleep, sighing she got up and went to the bathroom, which stirred Peter from his sleep as he reached out beside him to try and locate Carla's body which wasn't there.

"Sorry" she mumbles "I didn't want to get up but I needed the loo"

"Hey it's alright, did me dad wake you?" Peter questions as the pots and pans clash downstairs, both Carla and Peter wincing at the noise

"Uh yeah" she replies quietly

"You're not still worrying about 'Chelle?" Peter questions as she nods biting her lip knowing exactly what Peter was going to say

"You hardly blame me, she was in cahoots with flamin' Vicky, trying to frame Robert for murder, if you call that normal then I will tell you something, I will be giving you some of my anti-psychotics" Carla retorts as Peter laughs reaching out to take her hand giving it a gentle squeeze

"You are alright though, you look a bit peaky if you don't mind me saying" Peter sits up, bringing his hand to her head, feeling no sign of a temperature

"I'm sure I will be fine, it's Christmas after all, lot's to do" Carla grins getting up to get some clothes on "What's the plan for today anyway?"

"Well the kids usually open their stockings before dinner, as there are no kids we just decided to open the main presents then probably go for a walk after dinner"

"Ah right, can you get the suitcase?" Carla points to the top of the wardrobe as Peter looks at her perplexed

"You didn't get me a holiday did you?" Peter grins cheekily as Carla sighs rolling her eyes

"No, I stored the presents in their you idiot but we could do with another holiday" she hits him playfully as he gets the suitcase down placing it on the floor as she excitedly opens the case to reveal the presents for the family members

"You have been busy" Peter raises his eyebrows as she grins separating them into piles for each family member

"Can you take this pile and this pile downstairs, we'll drop these ones off at 'Chelles, Johnny and Jenny's later, I gave Roy's his yesterday"

"Sure come on then, let's head downstairs"

"Carla, Peter! Happy Christmas" Ken greets them as Carla grins helping Peter to offload the presents under the tree

"Happy Christmas dad" Peter smiles bringing him into a gentle hug

"Yeah Happy Christmas Ken" Carla smiles wrapping an arm around Peters shoulders kissing the side of his head

"So the food is in the oven, how about we open some presents?"

"This ones for you baby" Carla smirks as Peter barrows his eyes ripping the paper off

"Aw thank you baby, this is a bit of an upgrade from my old one" Peter grins holding up a black leather jacket as Carla bites her lip thinking how good he would look in it

"I know it's hardly the big winter coat I was insisting on, but I saw it and couldn't resist" she grins

"Heres one for you" Peter beams handing her the small square box, no doubt jewellery, Carla ripping it open revealing a simple platinum band, a diamond in a clasp which had a grey tinge to it, as she was staring in awe at the ring, she didn't notice Peter get down on one knee in front of her

"Peter…what?" she bites her lip her eyes glassy with tears

"If its too soon we can wait but, will you marry me…again?"

"Um…" she pauses glancing around the expectant faces of Ken and Claudia who virtually gasped at Peter's grand gesture

"I understand whatever your decision"

"Ok, yes I'll marry you" Carla smiles as Peter takes the ring and slides it onto her finger

"A perfect fit, that's got to count for something" Claudia states with a smile, Ken giving Carla a hug and welcoming her to the family

Dinner eaten and most presents open, apart from one, Peter's main present which Carla was nervous about giving him, they were more than enjoying Christmas this year, finally together a welcome change in both of their lives, With Ken and Claudia out walking Eccles, Carla led Peter upstairs for his next gift, knowing Peter he probably thought it was lingerie but Carla knew that he would love this surprise, love it more than the world itself, her only worry was that would she be able to give the love it deserved.

"You're eager"

"Oi, I bought you up here for everything other than mucky business, you have one thing on your mind" she scolds, as Peter grins, Carla grabbing her scarf to blindfold him

"Is this really necessary?"

"Most definitely" she replies placing a present into his hands, untying the scarf, watching his eyes adjust to the light, biting her lip

"You can open it"

"Ok" he grins taking the lid off the box "What…?"

"So…?"

"Is this for real?"

"Yes, for real, what do you think, I would understand if you didn't you know want-?" Carla questions in anticipation biting her lip out of reflex glancing down to Peter's present

"Woah, woah" he pauses cutting her off "This is more than amazing"

"You sure?"

"Yes!" he grins "at least I knew why you looked so off this morning!" he realises as Carla nods taking his hand and placing it on her tummy

"Seriously though, what do you think?"

"I think, that this little stick, with these two lines on it, is the best Christmas present in the world"

"Really?"

"Hey, I'm going to be a dad, and you're going to be a mum and our baby, it's going to be the luckiest in the world, half of me half of you"

"God I was worried then, in case you didn't want it" she sighs in relief as Peter kisses her forehead

"How long have you known?"

"Don't be mad ok-"

"I wont"

"I've known for a couple of weeks now, I had my suspicions and it took a while to muster up the courage to take the test" she smiles slightly holding the pregnancy test

"So this is it then? Our future?"

"Our future"

* * *

**This is just a little thing I put together (sorry for mistakes, I'm currently with one eye), i just felt bad because I hadn't been uploading any chapters of my other stories, so this is just a one shot whild i continue to perfect the chapters on my other ones ready for them to be published.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Set on New Years Day...**

* * *

"Morning" he whispers pulling her body into his as she sighs annoyed from being roused from her sleep at god knows what hour in the morning, Carla wrapping her arms around Peter's neck on the small single bed they were sharing in the spare room at his dad's

"Mmm morning darlin' and happy new year" Carla whispers as an unpleasant sensation runs through her body, her face changing from a pleasant smile to her scrambling around on the bed practically leaping over Peter and rushing to the bathroom, Peter following her seeing her head down the toilet, Peter trying not to laugh

"You better be grateful" Carla mutters, her head still down the loo as Peter laughs grabbing her toothbrush and dolloping generous amounts of toothpaste on it for her as she finally stands up and swipes it from him, glaring at his smirking face through the mirror

"Sorry" he bites his lip as Carla's expression softens, Peter wrapping his arms around her waist, his hands coming to rest on her abdomen , Carla smiling at the contact as she places the toothbrush back in the pot on the sink

"You're ok with this?" Carla turns to face him as Peter nuzzles into her neck, kissing the soft skin which was there before pulling back to answer her question smiling widely at how she didn't look so pale now

"Me? Of course, I'm more than ok with it? What about you?"

"It just took a while for me to sink in that's all but now, I still don't know but that's ok isnt it…all I know is that I want this baby"

"I could tell y'know"

"Ey?"

"There was something different about you…you had this glow about you that you didn't have before, that same glow you had when…well you know…I had my suspicions that's all"

"I guess you know me too well" she shrugs nonchalantly going back into the spare room and sliding back into bed, Peter following her as she relaxes against him, shifting against the wall so Peter could cuddle her

"We haven't had a chance to talk about this properly…not with Robert and Michelle and her leaving" Carla says as Peter smiles leaning in to kiss her on the lips, as she smiles into his kiss, Peter placing a hand on her stomach as they snuggle up together

"We have time now don't we?"

"I guess we do…"

"So, what's going on in that head of yours then?" Peter grins as she smiles not really knowing where to begin, not really knowing how she felt, she knew she felt happy, more than happy but after everything that happened before she was a little worried that Peter would stray again and that the pressure might become too much for them both

"I guess I'm worried about what it means for us, a baby is a big responsibility" she chews her lip playing with the finger's on Peter's hands absentmindedly as Peter smiles shifting in position and lifting her up slightly so she was sat on his lap

"We would need our own place for starters"

"That's true, I just want to make sure it's alright I guess, I worry you know…"

"I understand, why don't we go for a walk, take some time out for ourselves?" Peter suggests as Carla nods sliding out of bed and grabbing her leggings and flowing top, Carla chucking her hoody over her outfit as Peter smiles at her looking through her messages as she sighs

"Michelle's updated her status to living in Ireland now" Carla smiles as Peter pulls her up out of the old worn down armchair in his room wrapping his arms around her as she reaches up to kiss him

"Why don't we tell people?"

"Ey? We haven't even had a scan yet, I have no idea how many weeks I am…what's with this whole spur of the moment thing?"

"Look, what I'm thinking is it might make it a bit more real for both of us, we could start with Johnny and Jenny, then head off to Daniel's and when everyone's there we can tell them all at once, plus Johnny and Jenny need to find out about the engagement don't they?"

"I guess…let's think about it on the walk yeah?"

"Alright, we don't have to I'm just thinking it might make it a bit more real for both of us, why not switch it up a bit, do it differently from last time" he suggests as Carla nods biting her lip going into the chest of drawers next to the bed and pulling out the box she gave Peter yesterday which contained the positive pregnancy test, Carla taking a picture of it, Peter resting his chin on her shoulder watching her type out a message to Michelle as she attaches the picture, grinning in anticipation as she presses send

"I wasn't expecting you to agree…but sure" Peter laughs as she grins raising her eyebrows turning to face him

"Still some surprises in me yet eh?"

"I guess so, come on get your butt down those stairs" Peter grins giving it a smack as she smirks shaking her head as they both go down the stairs, being greeted by Ken who was frying bacon, Carla grimacing tugging on Peter's arm as he realises that she didnt look to good ushering her out of the house

"We're just popping out for a walk before brekkie, we'll be back soon" Peter smiles as Ken nods, Carla going outside and taking a deep breath trying to quell her racing nausea, Peter bringing her in for a hug

"Sorry, it's just bacon…thinking about it makes me want to hurl" she replies getting out her phone and seeing a message from Michelle, Carla smiling showing Peter the phone as Michelle's contact pops up on Carla's screen, Carla going to answer it as they walk towards the recreation ground

"Hi 'Chelle…yeah I thought you'd be regretting your choice…I'm fine yeah, sickness has definitely kicked in…hey you can always come down for the birth…yeah you can't tell Johnny or Jenny or your parents, even Kate in case it gets out…I think we're planning to tell people before the scan anyway, changing it up from last time…look I better go, we're going for a walk to try and stop my sickness…yeah thanks 'Chelle, take care…bye"

"Was she happy?"

"Over the moon, she wanted to come back but I left the ball in her court, it's her decision at the end of the day isn't it?"

"I guess so, look I just want to reassure I'm going to be here every step of the way, I'm not going to stray not when I have so much to lose, I love you and-" he pauses to put a hand on her stomach "-I love you"

"I know you won't, you love me, now more than ever, come on" she smiles linking her arm with Peter as they begin to do a lap around the lake which was in the middle of the red rec, Peter smiling at the sight of a little girl feeding the ducks with her mum and dad

"That could be us in a few years" Peter whispers pointing to the little girl who was squealing excitedly at the fact one of the ducks caught the bread she threw in

"It could" Carla smiles at the sight, she couldn't help but feel like her life was falling into place as they continue to walk coming across play apparatus this time, seeing a little boy and his dad pushing him on the swing

"And that could be you, pushing your son on a swing as well"

"I guess it could, but you see that there" Peter points to the pram where two adults were arguing over who got to push it, Carla smiling turning to face Peter

"What about it?"

"That will be us later on this year, and I will tell you something, I can't wait... come on let's head home ey?"

"And tell everyone?"

"If you want, I'll follow your lead yeah?" Peter smiles as they walk up Victoria Street, Carla stopping in front of the fire escape, taking Peter's hand and leading him up the stairs to the top, Peter's heart racing at the fact that this place had some horrible memories surrounding it

"I just needed to do this before we make one of the biggest decisions of our lives" she smiles looking out over Victoria Street and the surrounding areas of their neighbourhood, closing her eyes imagining what it would've been like if she jumped on _that _day

"I'm so glad you saved me"

"Me too"

"Peter, I promise I will never scare you like that again"

"You were ill Carla"

"I know, come on, let's go and tell Johnny and Jenny" Carla smiles as they walk back down the steps of the fire escape and on to the Rover's which was now open, Carla and Peter waiting at the bar as Johnny smiles at the massive grin his eldest daughter had on her face, Peter speaking to Jenny as they both go into the backroom

"We have a little announcement, well I wouldn't call it _little_" Carla smiles holding out her hand with her engagement ring on letting it catch the light as the greyish tinge reflects back into her eyes

"Congratulations" Johnny beams bringing Carla into a hug as he kisses the side of her head, Jenny doing the same, taking Carla's hand to look at the diamond and seeing the grey tinges which were reflecting back at her

"It's beautiful, Johnny come have a look at this ring!" Jenny squeals as Johnny smiles taking Carla's hand and smiling tearfully at her bringing her in for another hug

"Hey! It's meant to be me getting emotional not you!" Carla exclaims pulling away, Peter putting an arm around her shoulders as she bites her lip glancing up to Peter who prompts her gently

"There's something else as well…"

"You want us to do the reception?" Jenny grins as Peter rolls his eyes Carla biting her lip and placing a hand on her stomach, Peter doing the same, his hand on top of hers

"Hang on…no…you're not?" Jenny bites her lip as Carla raises her eyebrows Jenny jumping up and squealing clapping her hands

"Carla's pregnant!" Jenny exclaims as Johnny brings a hand up to his mouth in shock Peter kissing Carla on the forehead

"No way!" Johnny gasps bringing Carla in for a hug as she rolls her eyes at all the attention

"When are you due?" Jenny questions eagerly as Carla bites her lip not really knowing how to answer, was it worth guessing or just saying that they didn't know because they hadn't had a scan yet?

"We haven't had a scan yet, we just wanted to mix things up and tell you all now I guess, it wouldn't make a difference on the outcome anyway I guess…but if I was to guess maybe June, July maybe August at a push?"

"So a summer baby eh?"

"Yeah pretty much, well we need to head off to Daniel's now we're planning to tell him, Adam, Claudia and Ken as we decided to spend the evening with him like we did yesterday, so we need to get going otherwise we will be accused of being late" Peter smiles as Johnny offers his hand to him to shake

"Look after her, yeah?"

"You have my word, I know it doesn't mean much but I will do anything to save her from pain, come on then lets head off" Peter smiles as both him and Carla leave the pub, Carla biting her lip wrapping her arms around Peter neck, leaning in to kiss him gently, but tenderly on the lips

"What was that for?" Peter questions as they cross the road Carla grinning from ear to ear at how happy she was at the present moment and how this sense of realism to her pregnancy was exciting her as well as making her nervous

"I'm just happy" she replies cryptically, pressing the buzzer to Daniel's flat as he lets them in, Ken and Claudia appearing behind them both as they all go up, Daniel holding Bertie who immediately makes Carla's smiles even wider as she takes him off Daniel and holds him on her hip, Bertie pulling at her hair

"So then what trivial nonsense are we watching tonight?"

"The rerun of the fireworks obviously..." Carla states as if it was obvious considering they were all enjoying each other's company last night, Carla continuing to coo over Bertie as Peter pinches his cheeks lightly, Carla glancing at him knowing this would be them this time next year

"We have an announcement"

"Hey, what have you done now?" Adam teases as Daniel hands Peter two cups of tea one for him and one for Carla as she was holding Bertie

"He's done a lot actually…he proposed to me then he got me up the duff" Carla smirks as Ken and Claudia gasp, Carla handing Bertie to Peter turning to face them all biting her lip

"You're not joking?" Daniel exclaims as Carla shakes her head showing the engagement ring to Daniel and Adam knowing that Ken and Claudia had already seen it

"Wait you're pregnant Carla?" Claudia confirms as Carla nods excitedly Ken bringing her in for a hug as she smiles grabbing her phone and showing them the picture of the positive pregnancy test to prove her point

"How far along then?"

"She hasn't had a scan yet but we decided to change things up a bit knowing the outcome wouldn't change whatever happened" Peter explains handing Bertie back to Daniel as he smiles

"If I were to guess it would probably be around the summer" Carla smiles as Peter kisses the side of her head giving her a cup of tea as well as pulling her body into his

"Wow so another grandkid then? That is something worth celebrating…to Peter and Carla" Ken smiles holding his glass of champagne up as Daniel and Adam copy

"To Peter and Carla…"


End file.
